


Dreams of Cursed Hatred

by AkenJizo



Category: Naruto
Genre: AU, Gen, Sasuke and Indra meet and stuff happens
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2015-02-28
Updated: 2015-03-10
Packaged: 2018-03-15 14:38:03
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 2,925
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/3450770
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/AkenJizo/pseuds/AkenJizo
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>The night after the Uchiha Massacre, Sasuke dreams of a strange man.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Meeting Hatred

**Author's Note:**

> Naruto belongs to Masashi Kishimoto and Shonen Jump, not me.

Uchiha Sasuke had been having a rough day.  It wasn’t quite as bad as last night, when his older brother Itachi had murdered their entire clan, but it was still a day he just wanted to be over.  Shinobi from the village had been stopping by the room in the hospital he’d been moved too as soon as his comatose form had been found.  They’d been asking questions, giving thanks that he’d been spared, and expressing regrets and sympathies over his loss.  He didn’t care about any of them; he just wanted them to shut up, go away, and let him grieve.

The six year old Uchiha definitely looked the worse for wear.  His black hair was tangled and messy, tear trails were still fresh from his eyes (which had solid black iris’, to his shame; maybe if he had the sharingan, he could have stopped Itachi, and his mom and dad would still be alive).  His usual blue clothing had been replaced with a white hospital robe, and…well, he looked like a six year old boy who just saw his parents get killed right in front of him.

Thankfully, the day was finally winding down, which meant that soon the last loyal Uchiha would be too tired to stay awake and (hopefully) too tired to dream.  He was currently lying down on the bed the hospital had apparently deemed better than his actual one back home, the sun having set a long time ago.  Just a little longer, and he could finally close his eyes and truly rest, if only for a short while.  He hoped his plan would work, and that he would be too tired for dreams.  He knew that, if he _did_ dream tonight, he’d just be reliving his parents’ murder again and again and again and again.  It would be just like being back in that genjutsu that Itachi had put Sasuke in, only this time it’d be his own mind that supplied the images.

Eventually, of course, his eyelids simply became too heavy to keep open, and Sasuke drifted off into the land of dreams.

 

* * *

 

Sasuke blinked his eyes open, sitting up as he did so.  Had he already woken up?  It felt like he’d just been lying down to sleep a second ago; the night hadn’t really passed that fast, had it?  He hoped not.  He was still tired and miserable and just didn’t want to deal with all the stuff that being awake would inevitably bring.

Blinking the last of the drowsiness from his eyes (for now), the last loyal Uchiha looked around for a moment before realizing that he couldn’t be anything but a dream.  After all, there wasn’t anywhere in the world that was just a blank, endless expanse of nothing with an ocean for a floor.  He quickly got to his feet (he didn’t quite know how he was standing _just_ above the water’s surface, but this was a dream so he rolled with it), thinking quickly.  If this was a dream, why could he think so clearly and…unjumbled?  Injumbled?  Not all over the place. 

Sasuke felt the hairs on his neck suddenly stand up on end.  He didn’t know how, but he knew he wasn’t alone here.  Someone else was with him, just out of sight.  He twisted around quickly and spotted a man some ways away.  The stranger was wearing a white robe, navy blue pant leggings and shirt sleeves poking out from underneath the robe’s lower half and sleeves, respectively.  There was a teardrop necklace pattern going along the open neckline, said opening reaching down to _just_ above the middle of his chest.

Sasuke felt a sudden lump in his throat as his gaze reached the man’s face.  The man seemed to be wearing black eye-liner, though admittedly the young orphan couldn’t tell if it was natural or not.  The man’s black hair was wild and slightly spikey, with two “tassels” going down the sides of his face.  But what captured the young shinobi-to-be’s attention the most was his solid black irises, filled with surprise, understanding, and…something else he couldn’t quite identify.  Anger maybe, but not directed at the younger of the two.

The stranger looked like an Uchiha.

The mysterious figure stared at Sasuke for a moment longer before finally speaking.  “You are quite something, child.  I never expected you to awaken me, let alone ever meet me face to face.  Such a thing has never happened before.”

Sasuke felt like running, but he stood his ground.  This was just a dream.  Nothing here could really hurt him.  He wouldn’t run away from himself.  “Who are you?!”

The man nodded slightly.  “A fair question, I suppose.  I am Indra, son of Hagoromo.  I am also a man who is able to sympathize with your plight, Uchiha Sasuke.  After all, I too lost everything because of my brother.”

Sasuke’s eyes widened a bit at that statement.  He understood?  All the people who visited him and took care of him since the incident offered their sympathy and pity, but none of them really got what he was going through.  Was it possible that this man did?  At the very least, he believed Indra’s claim about his brother.  The look in his eyes conveyed a combination of pain and rage that couldn’t be faked.  The youngest living Uchiha knew; he’d seen the same look just this morning when he’d finally looked into a mirror.

Sasuke looked at his white-robed sympathizer for a moment, trying to find the right words to say.  “How do you know who I am?  How do you know what happened?  What do you want?”

Indra paused for a long while, even closing his eyes for a moment.  “I know who you are because I have been hearing your name all day, just as you have.  I know what happened because that too has been repeated from the moment you woke until the moment you closed your eyes.  As for what I want…I wish to be here for you, to speak with if nothing else.  After all…”  The strange man opened his eyes, and Sasuke nearly cried out in shock; those eyes were unmistakable.  A red iris with a black circle in the middle, and three teardrop markings arranged in perfect unison…there was no doubt about it.  Those were fully matured sharingan.

“…we’re family.  And unlike our traitorous brothers, I understand the value of family.”

Sasuke couldn’t breathe for what felt like an eternity, and before he realized what he was doing, he threw himself into Indra, hugging the other tightly as he tears began to fall once more.  In that moment, it didn’t matter that this was a dream.  It didn’t matter if Indra was telling the truth, or if the man was just a figment of his own mind created in a desperate attempt to keep itself from breaking in despair.  All that mattered was that he had someone.  Someone was truly there for him.  Someone saw past Uchiha Sasuke, last of the Uchiha, and saw Sasuke, the little boy that had just lost everything.

He wasn’t alone.


	2. Hatred's Beginning

After that first meeting with Indra, Sasuke didn’t try to escape his dreams anymore.  He didn’t go to Indra’s Ocean (as he’d started calling it) every night, and on those nights that he didn’t, his nightmares had full sway.  When he did, however, the two Uchiha talked to each other until the younger of the two awoke.  They didn’t talk about anything important, really; it was just meaningless small talk, Sasuke telling Indra about his day.  The elder Uchiha already knew all about it, of course, but he listened anyway.  The last loyal Uchiha appreciated that more than words could convey.

However, despite all of that, Sasuke still had trouble trusting Indra.  The man had proved that he was of the Uchiha (he had the sharingan and...well, he just looked like an Uchiha in general), but what kind of Uchiha was he?  Was he like Sasuke’s parents, or like Itachi?  Was his declaration of family genuine or just a temporary ruse for some unknown goal?  Was he truly attached to Sasuke as only family could be, or was he using the young Uchiha as a hapless pawn?

Sasuke resolved to find out.

 

* * *

 

Sasuke lucked out; he went to Indra’s Ocean that very night.  The man himself was sitting in his usual spot some ways away from Sasuke, staring at the boy with that inscrutibble (…that wasn’t right.  Inscrutibobble?  Inscrutibable?  Something that couldn’t be read) look on his face.  That right there was one of the reasons Sasuke had trouble trusting Indra; the last time he’d seen that look, it’d been on the face of a murderer and traitor.

“Welcome once again, Sasuke.”

The young Uchiha nodded quickly before getting to the point.  “Indra…who are you really?  I know you’re an Uchiha, and that we’re related, but how _are_ we related?  I don’t remember you from around the clan’s compound at all.”

Indra stared at Sasuke in silence, his gaze never wavering.  Eventually he sighed.  “I can certainly tell you the tale, if you like.  I cannot guarantee that you will believe me, but it is the truth, and it is all I can offer.”

The elder Uchiha took his younger family member’s silence as a yes.  “When I was born, my name was Ootsutsuki Indra.  I, along with my brother Asura, was trained by my father to inherit his art and his dream.  We were to bring Ninshuu to the world at large, and show people the way to everlasting peace.”

Indra’s eyes glazed over a bit as he got lost in his memories.  “I excelled at every task father gave us, while Asura floundered in his attempts to keep up.  I was the prodigal son; there was nothing I couldn’t do, and I did it alone.  People called me a genius, though I have my doubts; were I truly a genius, I would have seen what was coming.”

“In any case, the time eventually came for Asura and I to begin the final leg of our training.  We were to go into the world at large and interact with all the people in it, in order to better understand and empathize with those that we would eventually lead.  We were to adhere strictly to the tenants of Ninshuu, and to discover for ourselves the true meaning behind its teachings.”

“My journey was a difficult one, even for me.  I met many people, and got involved in many feuds and great strife.  Violence was always supposed to be an absolute last resort, but in my travels, I quickly learned that sometimes it is the _only_ resort.  I was strong, my travels made me stronger, and all those I met began to hail me as a hero.  Not without reason; I can say, without any hubris, that my actions saved a great many lives.”

He paused, and Sasuke watched in trepidation as Indra’s expression slowly became darker and darker.  “I don’t know what sort of journey Asura went on, what sort of beings he met or what trials he endured along the way.  Whatever the case, by the time he and I met again, he had gathered a small band of lackeys that were at his beck and call.  He called them friends, but they were merely followers.”

“But more importantly, Asura himself had changed.  Gone was the weakling who chased at my coattails.  Gone was the little brother who simply couldn’t keep up.  In his place stood Ootsutsuki Asura, a man who had spat in the face of everything life had stacked against him, and had somehow become my equal.”

“We decided then and there that it was time to return to our father.  We had both progressed far.  Asura may have somehow secured a meteoric rise in ability, but he was not able to surpass me, even with that.  We were equals in strength, but if we had fought then, I have no doubt I would have emerged victorious.  In the end, I was still his elder brother.”

“Father was pleased with our progress, but especially with Asura’s.  It was understandable; he’d gone from an exceedingly weak creature to…well, someone who could keep up with even a ‘genius’ such as myself.  It was nothing short of miraculous.  Father…was very impressed.  The praise he heaped on Asura was unending.”

True fury had dominated Indra’s face now, and Sasuke was honestly beginning to fear for his life, despite this being a dream.  Even with that look, however, Indra’s voice retained its unnatural calm.  “Father was _so_ impressed, in fact, that he named Asura his successor on the spot.  Everything I’d worked towards my entire life was dashed in that instant.  I was apoplectic, of course, but father was far wiser than Asura and I combined.  I despised it, but I could not question it.  I thought things couldn’t get any worse.”

“Then, within the hour, father died.”

Sasuke stared at Indra in horror, realization beginning to dawn on him.  Indra was so lost in his own memories he could no longer see Sasuke, even as he continued recounting the tale.  “I could have accepted father choosing Asura over me in time.  I could have accepted that all my efforts had been for naught.  I could even have accepted suddenly being shunted into my own little brother’s shadow.  But the one thing I could never, and will never, accept is the fact that at the end, father’s thoughts were not of his sons or his dream, but of Asura alone.  I could not accept that, at the very last moment, Asura had _stolen_ our father’s love from me.”

“Asura didn’t understand, the idiot.  He thought that father’s death, while tragic, was nothing to truly mourn over.  I could not accept it.  I could not tolerate it.  I could not remain the family of a man who cared nothing for our father’s death.”

“So I didn’t.  I disowned my brother and left to found my own clan.  I traveled far and wide, searching for the perfect place to raise my descendants.  I met many of old acquaintances during my search, and I eventually settled in the Land of Fire.  I found a woman eventually fell in love with, and we decided on a name for our new family.”

The young boy knew what his companion was going to say before he said it.  He wasn’t dumb; he could read between the lines.  Even so, he found himself holding his breath as the rage on Indra’s face subsided and the elder man returned to reality.

“Uchiha.”

“Who am I?  I am Uchiha Indra, founder of the Uchiha clan, and your ancestor by blood.  _That_ is what I mean when I say we are family, Uchiha Sasuke.  And I know the sting of betrayal and loss far too greatly to inflict it on my own kin.”

Sasuke nodded slowly.  He didn’t know what to think about the story.  On the one hand, it was totally ridiculous.  On the other hand, he was standing over an ocean in a realm of absolute nothingness.  Disbelief over possibilities was pretty hard, considering the circumstances.

Indra noted Sasuke’s silence, and his face softened for half a second.  “My own loss must seem trivial to you, Sasuke.   After all, when my brother betrayed me, he only stole my father from me.  Yours stole so much more.  But Asura and father were all I had, and I lost both in one fell swoop.  That pain, and the pure hatred that followed it, made me who I am today.  That is why I can understand your pain, and why I sympathize so strongly.  Even if the entire world stands against you, I will remain by your side.  This I swear.”

The last loyal Uchiha felt his own sadness begin to take hold at that, and he nodded slowly.  “Yeah…okay.  I get it.”  The two of them went silent for a long while, both lost in their own thoughts, before one of those thoughts brought them back to reality.  Sasuke looked back up at Indra, a question having arisen.  “Hey Indra…you can fight, right?”

Indra blinked for a moment before slowly nodding, waiting to see where his descendant was going with this.  “I…I have to avenge my clan.  I have to kill Itachi so that the Uchiha can rest in peace…but I can’t do that right now.  I’m too weak.  That’s why…please train me!  Help me get stronger!  Give me the strength I need to end _that man_ once and for all!”

Sasuke bowed low to Indra, throwing away his pride if it would just convince his ancestor to help him.  He stayed that way for what felt like an eternity before he felt a hand on his shoulder.  He looked up, and Indra…well, he wasn’t smiling, but it was as close as most Uchiha ever got.  “There’s no need for that, Sasuke.  Of course I will help you.  After all, we’re family.”

Indra looked up sharply before sighing in exasperation.  “It appears our time is up for tonight.  We will have to begin in earnest whenever you next arrive.  Until next time, my child.”

Sasuke blinked once.  Then twice.  The third time he blinked, he found himself no longer at Indra’s Ocean.  Instead, only the sterile white ceiling of the hospital was there to greet him.  The last loyal Uchiha sighed.  Time for yet another long day…


End file.
